Back in ’88, I remember the argument that rap music was
creating violence. If you were living it, you knew the violence was already there, the music was a reflection of the
environment that existed in the Los Angeles area. It wasn’t
limited to Compton or South Central…
it was everywhere where the drug wars
were being played out, from Pomona to
Long Beach. If you took away N.W.A.
and listened to only the M.C. Hammers and Tone-Locs of the rap world,
the violence would still be there. If
you took away the N.W.A. song, F*##
the Police, it wouldn’t mean suddenly it would all be good between the
police and citizens of the community. Just like if you take away a flag,
it doesn’t mean the racism won’t
still exist for those that do use it as
a symbol of white superiority. The
problems run deeper…
Gangsta, gansta, that’s what
they’re yellin’!
I often cringe at modern hip-hop.
It seems about as real as “professional” wrestling. While I knew
N.W.A. exaggerated on songs,
there was always an element of
truth to the music. Don’t think
the police would ever beat down
someone because of their race?
It is obviously as real as ever… Is every police officer out
there a raging egomaniac who thinks they can get away with
physical aggression? Obviously, not. The simplified arguments, the blanket arguments are not helping anyone and
only pushing us further away from the complex relationship
between serving justice, protecting the community, and
staying alive when the violence has no regard for authority.
I often wonder if there was a group like N.W.A. out there,
rappin about these incidents, plugging into the rage, the
frustration what would our younger generation just coming
in Ѽ